Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World from pensitivity101

Growing up, were you closer to your mother or father, or was it a balance of both depending on the circumstances?

When I was small I was a real Daddy’s Girl and I adored my father but I was definitely closer to my mother. To me, she was everything a mother should be and I felt sorry for the other kids because their moms were not as lovely as mine. She was a perfect mother to a teenage girl and encouraged me to reach for my dreams.

My father had a huge influence on the lives of my siblings and me. We all had to be in the lounge when he came home from work as from then until bedtime it was family time. He would talk to us about all sorts of things and was always interested in what we had been up to. He was a great storyteller and we learned many life lessons at my father’s knee. He was also an amazing grandfather and all his grandchildren adored him.

What was your favourite toy as a child, and do you still have it?

No, I don’t have any toys from my childhood. When my baby brother was born my sister and I both received life-like baby dolls for Christmas. Those dolls were our favourites for many years and did last till we were adults but I can’t remember what happened to them in the end.

All my children’s toys were donated to others when they outgrew them except for a few. My brother gave my youngest a Paddington Bear when she was nine. She is now 43 and still has it.

My girls owned wicker dolls prams and we still had them when our baby grandsons came to live with us. The girls used to play with them gently. The boys on the other hand had Teddy flying out of them as they did wheelies down the passage. The younger boy could still fit into the bigger pram and his brother would push him at a great pace around the house too. I still have the smaller pram and it is being used when my domestic helper brings her little girl to work with her. It is an absolute winner!

Did you have any secrets?

I am sure I did but I can’t remember now what they were! Oh yes – there was the time, when I was 21, and my boyfriend gave me a kitten that he had rescued from being drowned. We had a dog and my mother didn’t like cats and would definitely have said no to having yet another pet. So I hid the kitty in my bedroom and fed it in secret and hid a litterbox under the bed. After a few days, my baby brother (14) discovered my secret and ‘the cat was out of the bag!” So I had to find a home for Linus. My boyfriend and I decided to ask our friends who had a five-year-old little girl if they’d like a pet for her. We took the kitty around and knocked on the door. They couldn’t believe their eyes! Before they’d put their little one down for her nap she’d said a prayer, “Please Lord Jesus, send me a pet cat!” So when she awoke her prayer was answered!

What did you want to be when you grew up, and are you anywhere close?

I used to think about being a teacher quite a lot when I was small and loved playing ‘school-school’. Often I would say to my friends, “If I ever become a teacher, I will not do what Miss X does!” Not that any of our teachers were bad. I just thought I could do better. Anyway I never actually fixed on the idea until my last year of high school. My parents had suggested I take up subjects like accounting, typing, and shorthand so that I could go straight into a high-paying secretarial job. They were probably right – I would have been an excellent secretary and I don’t regret learning those skills but I got ‘the call’ and ended up as a very happy primary school teacher.

Gratitude:
There is something to be grateful for every day, embrace it.

It certainly is a feeling. Every so often feelings of gratitude overcome me like when I look at our beautiful little harbour, walk along the long white sands of our beach, watch the sunset after a perfect day, and have a sushi supper at the harbour restaurant. I am so privileged to live in this beautiful safe little town at the southern tip of Africa. Priceless.

I love this week’s questions from Pensitivity100

What was the most memorable gift you gave someone?

I was once travelling with a friend when we spotted a beautiful hot air balloon in the sky and she said, “Oh I would love to go up in one of those!” I stored that little titbit of information away and months later just before she was to celebrate her 70th birthday I asked her for the birthday guest list. She was reluctant to give it to me but I was helping with the organisation of the party and said, “Trust me. I can’t tell you why I need it but I won’t do anything to embarrass you.”

My friend had stipulated that she wanted everyone to donate a book to a school library in lieu of gifts. I phoned each person and asked whether they would like to contribute to a Hot Air Balloon ride for our mutual friend. Almost everybody was thrilled by the idea – some also donated books! On the evening of the party I got the DJ to play, “Wouldn’t you like to ride in my beautiful balloon,” and then called the birthday girl up to the microphone. I then presented her with an envelope and said,” Would you like to ride in a beautiful balloon?” She looked totally confused until she opened the envelope to find a voucher for such a ride.

A few months later I took her to the Winelands on a beautiful calm day and she had her dream come try. I rode along with the ground crew and took photos.

What was the most memorable gift you received?

I have received many wonderful gifts in my life but the best has to be the surprise from my family for my 70th birthday last year. It was the most awesome weekend away with our children and grandchildren.

Would you be suspicious if your partner gave you flowers or chocolates for no reason?

No, I certainly would not be suspicious. It happens fairly often!

4.  Have you accepted a gift with pleasure, even if you hated it?

Yes, I have. Once I received a sushi-making kit from one of my children. I loved and still do love sushi, but I had no interest in learning to make it! I smiled sweetly and thanked her profusely and put the kit in the cupboard and left it there for months. Then one day while wondering what to make as a starter for a dinner party I took out the kit and read the instructions. While I was puzzling over them this same child came into the kitchen with a magazine that had photos of exactly how to prepare sushi! I made some and it was a huge success. Over the next several years my skills improved and I just loved making sushi! So the gift I didn’t want turned out to be one that I absolutely adored. (This particular daughter has a knack for picking just the right gift and/or card!)

Gratitude:
A gift given with love doesn’t need a price tag.

The above quote is absolutely true! I so value the little gifts and cards I have received from children I have taught. I treasure a little book compiled by one of the parents of a Grade One child I taught. Each page has a drawing and a sentence produced by each child. It is just so precious.

Here are my answers to the Easter Share Your World from Pensitivity100

Do you celebrate the Easter holiday and if not, do you have an alternative?

Yes, we do. When the grandchildren were younger we would have an Easter Egg Hunt in the garden. This year we did not celebrate with our own family.

Do you exchange gifts or have a traditional meal?

Our friends Sonja and Roger who live just around the corner from us had their family come to stay for the Easter Weekend. We helped accommodate some of them and joined them for their festivities too. We also had a visitor who arrived on Sunday and was happy to sleep in our caravan! On Good Friday we ate pickled fish for lunch and had hot cross buns for tea.

On Saturday we had a bring-and-share braai – I did a potato bake, broccoli salad and bacon and butternut savoury tart.

On Sunday, fourteen of us sat down to a beef fillet done on the braai. My contribution was a Greek salad.

On Monday everybody left except for our visitor, Tommy. We invited our exhausted friends over for braaied yellowtail served with potato salad, broccoli and red cabbage salad and spinach and butternut salad. After a weekend of entertaining such a huge crowd every day, Sonja was relieved to just relax. It was a good end to a wonderful Easter Weekend.

How many Easter Eggs (or alternatives) did you receive/give?

I gave all the children at the dinner a small packet of mini-Easter Eggs. There were four of them aged 5, 14, 16 and 18. I also gave Easter Eggs and treats to my domestic helper’s family. The adults did not exchange Easter Eggs but we certainly ate some!

Was Easter a Bank Holiday in your country or did you have to work this weekend?

Good Friday was a holiday as was Easter Monday. Our seaside town of Struisbaai was very busy as it was also the school holidays. Many people were making the most of the warm weather before winter sets in.

Gratitude:
There are only 24 hours in a day…….. don’t waste any as they cannot be replaced.

I love the above quote and am grateful for all the small pleasures in my life.

Once again we have some questions from Di at Pensitivity101 to answer.

 What kind of vacations did you have as a child?

When I was a pre-schooler I lived for three years in goldmine-littered Johannesburg which was far from the sea. The rest of the family on both sides resided in Cape Town and so my earliest holiday memories are of travelling there and back in the family Opal Caravan (Station Wagon). My two siblings and I, beside ourselves with excitement at leaving in the dead of night, would cuddle up together on a mattress at the back of the vehicle and finally fall asleep while Dad drove the 1400 kms, stopping only for loo breaks and picnic breakfasts and lunches at the side of the road. Then we would have three glorious weeks of family, sun and sea at Fish Hoek Beach.

When I was five we relocated to Fish Hoek and my father said that since we lived in a holiday resort it would not be necessary to go away for a holiday. But we did visit the Kruger National Park when I was seven years old and The Lakes at Wilderness when I was thirteen.

Have any of those remained favourites now that you’re an adult?

Although I only visited Kruger National Park once as a child, I never forgot it. I was forty-two years old when I went again and have been almost every year since.

What has been your best vacation ever?

This is a difficult one to answer. I have had so many awesome holidays. Game reserves aside I would say that the best holiday I had was cruising for a month from Mauritius to Venice in 2019.

Another very memorable holiday was in 1998 when we visited Australia. We did Sydney, Central, Sunshine and Gold Coast and also spent a few days bareboating in the Whitsunday Islands. It was truly amazing.

When our grandchildren were 7, 10, 14 and 15, we took them to Kruger National Park for the first time. This turned out to be totally amazing. We played game spotting games to keep their interest peaked but found that having four of them really worked well. The cousins got on super-well and the older two boys kept the younger two eager, engaged and entertained while travelling in the car as well as the time spent at the campsites. We have taken them on holidays since then but that one was certainly the best as seeing their delight at each sighting gave us more pleasure than seeing the creatures ourselves.

I blogged about this trip here

Do you prefer resorts where there are no kids allowed?

I don’t mind having kids around but at 70, a resort geared especially for families is not on my list of places to go. Now that we can, we travel out of school holidays. When we are caravanning off-season we find that there are very few children around but if there are we are quite happy to see them enjoying nature and the great outdoors.

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World questions from Pensitivity100

 Do you consider yourself to be romantic?

If you are romantic it means that you do and say loving things to your significant other. So yes, I believe I am romantic and so is my husband.

Do you send cards on Valentine’s Day?

No not anymore. When I was teaching my school made a big thing out of every special day and Valentine’s Day was no exception. The kids and teachers would dress up in red and we would make cards in the classroom. With our little ones they were usually for Mom or Dad! Each child would also get a little Valentine’s gift and we would teach the children about Saint Valentine and how the tradition of Valentine’s day began.

At home, I would give each of my family members heart-shaped chocolates.

Would you spend a considerable amount of money on a single red rose for your beloved?

I have never done that but I have been the recipient of a single red carnation. This was sent to me by my current husband after our first date! Yes – I fell for him straight away!

What is your idea of a romantic evening?

Dinner dancing at a smart restaurant. Years ago there was a hotel in Cape Town called the Cape Sun where we used to go for dinner dancing and then we would spend the night so we did not drink and drive. We did this at least twice a year and it did us so much good.

Gratitude:
Love is all around. Embrace it.

I am really grateful for a strong, romantic marriage that has stood the test of time. We have been happily together for 40 years and today is our thirty-sixth wedding anniversary!

Here are my answers to this week’s SYW questions from Pensitivity100

 Do you find it relatively easy to fall asleep at night?

Not really. I sleep quite well once I am asleep but it takes a while to doze off.

Do you remember your dreams?

Mostly I do but I need to write them down otherwise they disappear very quickly. I often look up the meanings. Sometimes they ring true at others not at all.

If you can’t sleep, do you watch TV, read or listen to music in the hope you will nod off?

I can’t read or watch TV otherwise I will disturb my husband. I do Sudoku on my phone. That helps.

Can you literally sleep anywhere (chair, sofa, bus, train, flight etc)?

I can’t sleep on an aeroplane. I can sleep in a car – I think the movement rocks me to sleep. But yes – if I’m really tired I can sleep anywhere. I once fell asleep during a staff meeting – I was ill – not bored!

Gratitude:
Flowers from a child, be they weeds or roses, have equal worth.

Flowers or a handmade gift from a child is so special. I find it hard to part with the cards and gifts given to me by my small learners when I was teaching.